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MEMORIAL  ADDRESS 


UPON  THE  LIFE  OF 


General  James  Green  Martin 


DELIVERED  AT  RALEIGH,  N.  C, 
MAY  10,  1916. 


BY 


HON.  WALTER  CLARK, 

CHIEF  JUSTICE  OF  THE  SUPREME  COURT 
OF  NORTH   CAROLINA 


GENERAL  JAMES  GREEN  MARTIN. 

MEMORIAL  ADDRESS  BY  HON.  WALTER  CLARK. 

MAY  10,  1916. 

President  of  the  Ladies  Memorial  Asociation,  Ladies 

and  Gentlemen: 

Fifty  years  and  one  have  fled  since  wreathed  around 
with  cypress  and  with  laurel  the  chosen  banner  of  a 
great  people  passed  into  history.  No  banner  was  ever 
borne  by  braver  soldiery  nor  sustained  by  generals  of 
greater  genius  or  by  any  people  with  more  devotion.  But 
Fortune  "that  name  for  the  unknown  combinations  of 
an  infinite  power  was  wanting  to  us,  and  without  her  aid 
the  designs  of  man  are  as  bubbles  on  a  troubled  ocean." 
Once  8  millions  of  the  great  Anglo  Saxon  race  hailed  that 
banner  with  gladness.  But  when  it  passed,  it  passed  for- 
ever, without  hope  that  it  should  come  again,  for  "its 
people 's  hopes  were  dead. ' '  Yet,  we  see  what  the  world 
has  never  seen  before — from  one  end  to  the  other  of  the 
land  over  which  it  waved,  from  the  Potomac  to  the  Rio 
Grande,  from  the  Gulf  to  the  great  rivers  of  the  North, 
the  Ohio  and  the  Mississippi,  countless  monuments  stand 
in  perpetual  memorial  of  the  valor  of  the  soldiers  that 
bore  it,  and  on  these  recurring  anniversaries  we  meet 
with  music  and  with  flowers  and  with  beauty,  in  memory 
of  the  "storm  cradled  nation  that  fell"  and  to  honor 
those  who  were  faithful,  even  unto  death. 

The  world  shows  nothing  else  like  it.  In  historic 
England  there  are  possibly  a  dozen  or  more  monuments 
to  commemorate  great  victories  won  in  her  great  island 
story  of  a  thousand  years.    In  France  here  and  there 


a  stone  tells  an  incident  of  the  splendid  heroism  of  that 
race,  and  in  Rome  with  its  2,500  years  of  empire,  of 
history  and  of  tradition  a  dozen  arches  recall  the  fame 
of  a  few  great  leaders.  In  France,  in  England,  in  Rome 
even  these  have  been  placed  at  the  expense  and  by  the 
order  of  the  government.  These  monuments  of  ours 
have  arisen  at  the  command  of  no  government  and  not 
at  the  expense  of  the  public  treasury.  They  are  the 
tribute  paid  by  the  noble  women  of  the  South  who  have 
never  forgotten  the  matchless  valor  of  the  soldiery  who 
stood  on  the  perilous  edge  of  battle  and  died  where  they 
could  not  conquer. 

I  would  have  you  remember  comrades  that  we  owe 
every  monument  that  stands  from  Virginia  to  Texas  and 
every  memorial  meeting  like  this  to  the  unshaken  fidelity 
of  the  women  of  the  South. 

At  the  request  of  the  Ladies  Memorial  Association 
of  Raleigh  I  am  to  recall  some  of  the  events  of  the  stir- 
ring life  of  one  to  whom  the  State  largely  owes  the  fact 
that  among  all  the  troops  of  the  Confederacy  there  was 
admittedly  none  that  were  better  disciplined,  better 
armed,  better  equipped,  than  those  from  North  Carolina 
—GENERAL  JAMES  GREEN  MARTIN. 


"  There  are  hours  long  departed  which  memory  brings 
Like  blossoms  of  Eden  to  twine  around  the  heart. 

As  time  rushes  by  on  the  might  of  his  wings 

They  may  darken  awhile  but  they  never  depart." 

There  will  never  depart  from  the  memory  of  those 
who  lived  thru  the  stirring  scenes  of  the  spring  and  sum- 
mer of  1861  the  exaltation  of  the  Southern  people.  It 
was  the  birth  of  a  new  nation,  filled  with  confidence,  and 


roseate  hopes.  It  was  then  that  companies  of  gallant 
young  men  were  coming  to  Raleigh  by  every  train  and 
regiments  were  being  organised,  drilled,  equipped  and 
sent  on  to  the  front.  The  enthusiasm  was  universal  and 
irresistible. 

Among  those  upon  whom  fell,  at  that  time,  more  than 
upon  anyone  else  the  burden  of  organising  and  marshall- 
ing these  troops  for  service  was  the  gallant  soldier  whose 
life  I  am  asked  to  summarise  in  a  brief  speech  on  this 
occasion. 

The  Adjutant  General  of  N.  C.  at  the  outbreak  of 
the  War  was  Col.  John  F.  Hoke  who  had  charge  of  organ- 
ising the  volunteer  regiments  in  the  beginning,  while  Gen. 
James  G.  Martin  had  been  appointed  by  the  Governor  to 
organise  the  10  regiments  of  State  troops,  as  they  were 
called,  who  had  been  enlisted  for  ' '  3  years  or  the  War. ' ' 
The  "Volunteers"  were  only  12  months  men.  Col.  Hoke, 
however,  was  soon  elected  Colonel  of  the  13th  volunteers 
and  thereupon  Gen.  Martin  by  orders  of  the  Governor 
took  charge  of  the  organisation  and  equipment  of  both 
volunteers  and  State  troops  until  the  legislature  met, 
when  Gen.  Martin  was  elected  Adjutant  General,  with  all 
the  military  power  of  the  State,  subject  only  to  the 
Governor,  under  his  constitutional  authority.  Under 
General  Martin  were  the  Departments  of  Quartermaster 
General  and  Commissary  General,  headed  by  those  most 
efficient  officers,  Major  John  Devereux,  and  Major 
Thomas  D.  Hogg,  besides  the  Ordnance,  Pay  and  Medical 
Departments  which  were  also  under  most  efficient  heads. 
How  he  and  they  discharged  their  duties  can  not  be 
shown  better  than  by  the  fact  already  stated  that 
there  were  no  troops  in  the  South  from  any  other  State 
that  as  a  whole  were  as  well  equipped,  armed  and  disci- 
plined as  those  from  this  State.     He  was  to  the  North 


Carolina  troops  what  the  famous  Carnot  was  to  the 
Troops  of  France  in  the  Great  Revolution.  Of  Carnot 
it  was  said  "He  organised  victory." 

General  James  G.  Martin  was  the  eldest  son  of  Doc- 
tor William  Martin,  a  physician,  planter,  shipbuilder  and 
Member  of  the  General  Assembly  of  North  Carolina,  and 
his  wife  Sophia  Scott  Dauge.  He  was  born  in  Elizabeth 
City,  N.  C,  14  Feb.,  1819,  and  after  preliminary  instruc- 
tion at  St.  Mary's  in  Raleigh,  at  that  time  a  school  for 
boys,  where  he  acquired  the  friendship  of  many  who 
afterwards  distinguished  themselves  in  the  Mexican  War 
and  in  the  War  between  the  States  and  in  civil  life,  he 
entered  West  Point  in  1836. 

Upon  his  graduation  at  West  Point  in  July,  1840,  the 
young  cadet  was  assigned  as  second  Lieutenant  to  the 
First  Regiment  of  Artillery  then  on  duty  at  Newport, 
R.  I.  In  1842  he  saw  his  first  service  in  the  field  on  the 
Canadian  Frontier  during  the  controversy  with  England 
over  the  Maine  and  New  Brunswick  Boundaries  known 
as  the  "Aroostook  War"  or  the  "War  of  the  Maps." 

This  was,  however,  settled  by  Mr.  Webster  and  Lord 
Ashburton  by  the  treaty  which  bears  their  names.  The 
First  Artillery  having  returned  to  Newport  he  was  mar- 
ried there  12  July,  1844,  to  Mary  Anne  Murray  Read — the 
great-granddaughter  of  George  Read  of  Delaware,  a 
signer  of  the  declaration  of  American  Independence,  and 
also  of  William  Thompson,  a  Brigadier  General  in  the 
Army  of  the  Revolution.  Lieutenant  Martin  remained 
in  garrison  at  Newport  till  1846  when  he  was  sent  with 
his  battery  to  General  Taylor  at  Brownsville,  Texas. 
War  with  Mexico  was  declared  12  May,  1846. 

During  the  3  days  assault  at  Monterey  21-22  and  23 
Sept.,  1846,  Lieutenant  Martin,  tho  still  second  Lieu- 
tenant, was  in  command  of  his  battery  which  distin- 


guished  itself  by  clearing  the  houses  of  the  enemy's  rifle- 
men and  arriving  at  the  Plaza  before  the  infantry,  who 
came  up  the  converging  streets.  The  reputation  thus 
achieved  was  so  great  that  thereafter  he  was  known  in  his 
own  regiment  as  '  *  the  man  of  Monterey. ' '  The  battery 
was  sent  around  to  reinforce  General  Scott  at  Vera  Cruz 
and  marched  with  him  to  the  City  of  Mexico.  It  was  thus 
at  Cerro  Gordo,  Contreras,  Cherubusco,  Molino  del  Rey 
and  Chapultepec  and  at  the  occupation  of  the  City  of 
Mexico.  Lieutenant  Martin  at  the  hard  fought  battle 
of  Cherubusco  in  the  valley  of  Mexico,  20  Aug.,  1847,  lost 
his  right  arm  which  was  shattered  by  grape  shot  while 
his  battery  was  hotly  engaged  with  the  enemy  strongly 
entrenched  behind  stone  walls,  pierced  for  musketry  and 
artillery.  But  despite  the  wound  he  rode  over  to  the 
adjacent  battery  in  the  same  regiment  which  was  com- 
manded by  Lieutenant  "Stonewall"  Jackson  and  asking 
him  to  take  command  of  his  battery  as  he  had  lost  his  arm, 
lie  took  the  sleeve  in  his  teeth  and  rode  off  the  field.  These 
two  young  men  had  served  side  by  side  in  the  same  regi- 
ment from  Vera  Cruz  up  to  that  point.  In  recognition 
of  his  gallantry  Lieut.  Martin  was  made  a  brevet  major 
for  "gallant  and  meritorious  conduct  at  the  battles  of 
Contreras  and  Cherubusco." 

In  1896  on  a  tour  thru  Mexico  I  followed  the  steps 
of  that  army  from  Vera  Cruz  to  the  City  of  Mexico, 
visiting  in  turn  each  of  the  battlefields  and  can  appre- 
ciate the  valor  and  ability  of  that  little  army  of  8,000 
men  which  starting  from  Vera  Cruz  pierced  the  enemy's 
center  and  did  not  pause,  and  without  sustaining  a  de- 
feat, until  they  entered  the  halls  of  the  Montezumas. 
After  that  final  success  the  treaty  of  peace  was  signed  at 
Gaudalupe  Hildalgo  by  which  half  of  the  territory  of 
Mexico  was  ceded  to  us.     When  the  war  broke  out  the 


8 


United  States  and  Mexico  were  equal  in  area.  At  its  con- 
clusion the  United  States  was  three  times  the  size  of 
Mexico. 

This  was  the  result  of  the  heroism  of  Taylor  and 
Scott  and  the  little  armies  which  they  commanded.  As 
a  result  we  not  only  settled  our  title  to  Texas,  but  ac- 
quired California,  Nevada,  Utah,  Colorado,  New  Mexico 
and  Arizona.  But  in  that  little  army  were  young  officers 
who  15  years  later  were  destined  to  become  the  leaders 
of  the  armies  on  both  sides  in  our  great  struggle.  Capt. 
Robert  E.  Lee,  Lieut.  T.  J.  Jackson,  Lieutenant  U.  S. 
Grant,  Capt.  Joseph  E.  Johnston,  Lieut.  W.  T.  Sherman, 
Lieutenants  Geo.  B.  McCellan  and  D.  H.  Hill,  Capt.  Brax- 
ton Bragg,  and  indeed  nearly  every  officer  of  the  highest 
rank  on  either  side  in  the  Great  Civil  War  saw  service 
in  those  stirring  days  in  1846  and  47  in  Mexico. 

After  his  discharge  from  the  Hospital  Major  Martin 
was  transferred  to  duty  and  was  stationed  at  Fortress 
Monroe,  Philadelphia,  and  Governor's  Island  and  was 
then  sent  to  Fort  Snelling  in  Minnesota  which  was  at 
that  time  on  the  remote  frontier  of  civilization.  At  the 
latter  point  he  had  the  misfortune  to  lose  his  wife  who 
left  surviving  her  four  children. 

On  8  Feb.,  1858,  Major  Martin  was  married  to  Miss 
Hettie  King,  sister  of  Gen.  Rufus  King,  who  had  been 
his  fellow  cadet  at  West  Point.  She  was  the  eldest 
daughter  of  Charles  King,  President  of  Columbia  Col- 
lege, New  York  City,  and  a  granddaughter  of  Rufus 
King,  first  American  Minister  to  Great  Britain.  Her 
younger  sister  married  Mr.  Waddington,  at  one  time 
prime  minister  of  France,  and  is  well  known  to  us  by 
her  charming  books,  giving  an  account  of  her  visits  to 
Moscow,  London  and  Rome  when  her  husband  was  suc- 
cessively Ambassador  from  France  to  Italy,  Russia  and 


9 


England,  and  her  no  less  charming  work  on  "Chateau 
Life"  in  France. 

Major  Martin  served  as  Quarter  Master  in  the  Utah 
Expedition  under  Albert  Sidney  Johnston  who  later  fell 
in  the  meridian  of  his  fame  on  the  field  of  battle  at 
Shiloh.  At  the  date  of  that  expedition  (1858)  there  was 
no  railroad  west  of  the  Mississippi,  and  the  expedition 
to  Utah  received  its  ammunition  and  supplies  under 
guard  of  troops  over  the  long  route  from  the  Mississippi 
to  Salt  Lake. 

On  20  May,  1861,  North  Carolina  repealed  the  Ordi- 
nance by  which  she  had  become  a  member  of  the  Federal 
Union.  Major  Martin  was  then  stationed  at  Fort  Riley, 
a  frontier  post  in  Kansas.  He  at  once  resigned  and 
started  on  his  long  journey  to  Raleigh  to  offer  his  sword 
and  his  services  to  his  native  State.  When  the  train 
passed  thru  Illinois  ex-Captain  Ulysses  S.  Grant,  then  in 
civil  life,  got  aboard  at  some  way  station.  They  had 
been  cadets  together  at  West  Point  and  had  served  to- 
gether in  the  long  march  from  Vera  Cruz  to  Mexico. 
Major  Martin  stated  his  purpose  of  offering  his  services 
to  North  Carolina  and  Grant  his  intention  of  tendering 
his  services  to  Mr.  Lincoln.  He  and  Grant  had  a  long 
conversation  as  old  comrades  and  Major  Martin  men- 
tioned that  he  was  on  his  way  to  Raleigh  to  tender  his 
services  to  his  native  State.  His  young  son  (now  Judge 
William  B.  Martin  of  Norfolk)  asked  his  father  whether 
he  was  not  afraid  that  he  (Grant)  would  report  him  to 
Lincoln  and  have  him  arrested,  which  was  answered  by 
an  emphatic  "No." 

Upon  arrival  at  Raleigh  Major  Martin  at  once  called 
on  Gov.  Ellis  and  tendering  his  services  was  given  the 
same  rank  which  he  had  held  in  the  U.  S.  Service  and 
was  appointed  Adjutant  General  for  the  ten  Regiments 


10 

known  as  State  Troops,  which  were  then  being  raised 
for  "three  years  or  the  war."  The  Act  to  raise  these 
troops  had  been  passed  by  the  Legislature  on  12  May, 
anticipating  the  Act  of  Secession,  and  General  Martin  at 
once  devoted  himself  to  the  arming,  equipping,  drilling 
and  disciplining  this  body  of  men  until  he  took  charge 
of  all  the  troops  of  the  State  under  the  Act  of  the  Legis- 
lature of  20  Sept.,  1861,  which  empowered  the  Governor 
to  appoint  "an  Adjutant  and  Inspector  General,  with 
the  rank  of  Major  General,  who  shall  be  general  in  chief 
of  all  the  forces  of  North  Carolina,"  subject  only  to  the 
Constitutional  authority  of  the  Governor.  In  this  capa- 
city he  prepared  all  the  troops  of  the  State  for  service 
and  retained  command  of  them  until  from  time  to  time 
successive  regiments  thus  armed,  equipped  and  drilled 
were  forwarded  to  Virginia  and  turned  over  to  the  Con- 
federate service. 

General  Martin's  service  in  the  old  army  both  in 
the  line  and  on  the  staif  had  rendered  him  thoroughly 
familiar  with  the  duties  required  of  this  office,  and  he 
entered  with  untiring  energy  into  the  thoro  organization 
of  the  North  Carolina  troops. 

The  entire  supervision  of  the  defense  of  the  State 
was  also  turned  over  to  him.  The  militia  laws  were  re- 
vised according  to  his  suggestion.  Horses  for  the  cav- 
alry and  transport  service  were  bought  in  Kentucky  and 
hurried  in  droves  thru  the  mountains.  Saddles  and  har- 
ness material  were  secured  by  special  agents  in  New 
Orleans  and  rushed  to  Ealeigh  by  rail.  Powder  works 
and  arsenals  for  the  manufacture  and  remodeling  of  arms 
were  created.  Camps  of  instruction  were  established, 
and  skilled  armorers  secured  to  make  sabres,  bayonets 
and  swords  by  the  thousands.  Shoe  and  clothing  fac- 
tories for  the  troops  were  located  at  several  points  in 


11 


the  State.  Quarter  Master,  commissary  and  ordnance 
stores  were  collected  from  all  parts  of  the  State.  Can- 
non were  provided  for  the  artillery  and  the  forts  were 
erected  and  strengthened  on  the  coast.  Besides  the 
"State  Troops"  volunteers  were  called  out,  disciplined 
and  sent  to  Virginia  until  North  Carolina  finally  fur- 
nished to  the  army  of  the  Confederacy  more  troops  than 
any  other  State  and  more  fighting  men  in  proportion  to 
her  population  than,  till  then,  any  nation  had  ever  fur- 
nished in  any  war. 

On  14  March,  1862,  Burnside  captured  New  Bern  and 
threatened  an  advance  into  the  interior.  On  15  May 
Gen.  Martin  received  a  letter  from  the  Confederate 
government  enclosing  a  commission  as  brigadier  general 
in  the  Confederate  army  and  asking  that  he  should  take 
icdjmmand  of  eastern  North  Carolina  *'m  this  emer- 
gency. ' '  With  the  consent  of  the  Governor  the  commis- 
sion was  accepted  and  General  Martin  took  command  of 
a  North  Carolina  brigade  with  headquarters  at  Kinston, 
to  hold  Burnside  in  check.  During  the  7  days'  battles 
around  Richmond  in  June  he  was  able  to  reassure  Gen- 
eral Lee,  who  anticipated  an  advance  from  Burnside,  by 
replying  to  his  inquiry  that  Burnside  had  made  no  ad- 
vance. In  July  after  the  7  days'  battles  around  Rich- 
mond, General  Lee  telegraphed  the  Governor,  in  prepar- 
ing the  defense  of  Richmond  in  anticipation  of  our  first 
Northern  campaign,  asking  if  he  could  spare  more  troops. 
The  Governor  replied  "I  have  no  troops  but  Martin's 
brigade.  You  can  have  that  if  needed."  Thereupon 
General  Martin  with  this  brigade  was  ordered  to  Vir- 
ginia and  was  stationed  at  Drewry's  Bluff,  below  Rich- 
mond, protecting  that  City  while  the  Confederate  army 
was  across  the  Potomac  in  our  first  Maryland  campaign. 
This  brigade  was  composed  of  the  17th,  44th,  47th,  and 


#* 


12 


52nd  N.  C.  Regiments.  At  Drewry's  Bluff  General 
Martin  was  slightly  wounded  in  his  remaining  arm  in  an 
advance  of  the  enemy.  Gov.  Clark,  learning  of  the 
enemy's  activity  in  eastern  North  Carolina  wired  for 
the  return  of  Martin  and  his  brigade.  But  all  the  Con- 
federate government  could  spare  was  one  regiment,  the 
17th  N.  C.  commanded  by  Gen.  Martin's  brother,  which 
he  was  permitted  to  bring  with  him.  The  26th  regiment 
was  transferred  from  Ransom's  brigade  to  fill  up  the 
gap  left  in  the  brigade  by  the  removal  of  the  17th  and 
later  the  11th  N.  C.  regiment  was  added  to  the  brigade 
which  was  placed  under  the  command  of  that  most  accom- 
plished gentleman  and  soldier,  Gen.  James  Johnston  Pet- 
tigrew,  and  after  his  lamented  death,  it  was  commanded 
in  succession  by  Gen.  Kirkland  and  Gen.  McRae. 

General  Lee  requested  Gen.  Martin  that  on  his  re- 
turn, while  retaining  his  rank  as  Confederate  Brigadier 
he  should  resume  his  duties  as  Adjutant  General  to  raise 
and  equip  more  troops  from  this  State,  in  which  work  he 
had  been  so  efficient.  General  Martin  with  whom  Gov. 
Vance,  who  had  now  succeeded  as  Governor,  heartily  con- 
curred, established  a  system  of  blockade  running  from 
Wilmington  to  Bermuda  and  Nassau,  which  contributed 
so  greatly  to  the  necessities  of  our  people  and  the  needs 
of  our  troops  by  bringing  in  provisions,  arms, 
ammunition,  clothing  and  supplies  of  all  kinds.  To  pro- 
cure these  the  State  purchased  large  quantities  of  cotton 
to  be  shipped  out  and  sold  at  war  prices.  So  successful 
was  this  system  that  North  Carolina  troops  were  better 
armed,  clothed  and  equipper  than  those  of  any  other 
Southern  State,  and  large  quantities  of  stores  were  turned 
over  to  the  Confederate  government,  which  singularly 
enough  had  not  established  a  similar  system  nor  pur- 
chased even  one  vessel  to  break  the  various  blockades. 


13 


North  Carolina  had  purchased  a  fast  vessel  fromerly 
known  as  the  ' '  Lord  Clyde. ' '  Governor  Vance  appointed 
Thomas  Crossen  her  captain  and  changing  her  name  to 
the  "Ad.- Vance,"  she  successfully  ran  the  blockade  thru 
the  enemy's  squadron  at  the  mouth  of  the  Cape  Fear  for 
a  long  time.  This  vessel  was  at  last  captured  towards 
the  close  of  the  war,  but  only  by  reason  of  the  fact  that 
the  Confederate  government  took  the  small  quantity  of 
good  coal  which  the  State  had  procured  for  the  use  of  its 
steamer  with  the  result  that,  forced  to  use  inferior  coal, 
the  vessel  lost  its  high  speed  and  besides  left  a  dark  trail 
of  smoke  which  enabled  the  enemy 's  vessels  to  keep  track 
of  her. 

In  the  early  fall  of  1863,  not  long  after  the  return 
from  the  Gettysburg  campaign  Gen.  Lee  notified  General 
Martin  that  he  would  require  every  man  North  Carolina 
could  furnish  for  his  next  campaign,  and  urged  Gen.  Mar- 
tin to  take  command  of  a  Confederate  brigade  again  with 
headquarters  at  Kinston. 

After  consultation  with  the  Governor  Gen.  Martin 
again  resigned  as  Adjutant  General  and  took  command 
of  a  brigade  of  Confederate  troops  with  headquarters 
again  at  Kinston.  This  brigade  consisted  of  the  17th 
N.  C.  regiment  commanded  by  Col.  Wm.  F.  Martin,  the 
General's  brother;  42nd  N.  C,  Col.  John  E.  Brown;  50th 
N.  C,  Col.  George  Wortham,  and  66th  N.  C,  Col.  A.  Dun- 
can Moore — to  which  was  attached  Paris'  battery  of 
artillery  and  Jefford's  cavalry.  This  brigade  was  soon 
afterwards  transferred  to  Wilmington,  and  a  part  of 
these  troops  under  Gen.  Martin's  personal  command  par- 
ticipated in  the  advance  upon  New  Bern.  In  this  move- 
ment they  captured  the  "Newport  Barracks"  with  10 
guns,  a  large  amount  of  stores  and  prisoners  and  de- 
stroyed the  railroad  bridge  across  the  Neuse.     The  Fed- 


14 


eral  General  Palmer  who  commanded  the  Federal  forces 
at  New  Bern  says  "Martin  did  his  part  well." 

During  the  winter  of  1863-4  Gen.  Martin  thoroughly 
drilled  and  equipped  the  brigade  which  became  one  of 
the  finest  brigades  in  Lee  's  army.  In  May,  1864,  he  was 
ordered  with  his  brigade,  some  4,000  strong,  to  Virginia, 
but  left  one  regiment,  the  50th  N.  C.  regiment,  under 
Col  Geo.  Wortham  in  this  State.  At  Bermuda  Hundreds 
on  17  May,  1864,  the  great  efficiency  and  the  rapid  move- 
ment of  Gen.  Martin's  well  drilled  troops  in  brigade  for- 
mation showed  to  his  men  as  well  as  commanding  officers 
the  value  of  the  perfect  discipline  and  obedience  which  he 
had  exacted  and  which  saved  us  that  day  from  probable 
disaster. 

On  20  May,  3  days  later,  the  brigade  was  again  at 
the  hard  fought  battle  of  "Howletts"  where  Gen.  Martin 
handled  the  brigade  so  coolly  and  easily  that  it  responded 
to  all  orders  even  while  charging  the  enemy  under  a 
heavy  fire  as  if  on  dress  parade  and  carried  the  enemy's 
position.  By  reason  of  his  strict  discipline  the  General 
had  not  been  over  popular  with  his  troops,  but  at  the 
close  of  this  successful  battle  the  brigade  cheered  him  and 
taking  him  on  their  shoulders  carried  him  to  headquar- 
ters, a  shock  to  his  sense  of  discipline,  but  a  striking  tri- 
bute from  the  troops  of  their  admiration  for  his  personal 
bravery  and  military  efficiency.  He  also  commanded  the 
Brigade  at  Second  Cold  Harbor  3  June,  1864,  when  Grant 
sustained  so  severe  a  repulse  that  when  he  ordered  his 
men  to  advance  again  to  the  assault  not  a  soldier  in  his 
army  stirred.  In  the  winter  of  1864,  after  Gen.  Martin 
had  been  sent  to  take  command  of  western  North  Caro- 
lina and  Gen.  Kirkland  had  succeeded  him  in  command  of 
his  brigade  near  Chaffin's  Bluff,  Gen.  Lee  rode  along  the 
lines  and  sending  for  Gen.  Kirkland  spoke  very  highly 


15 


of  the  discipline  and  efficiency  of  the  brigade.  Gen.  Kirk- 
land  attributed  its  high  state  of  efficiency  to  its  former 
commander,  Gen.  Martin.  To  this  Gen.  Lee  replied, 
"Gen.  Martin  is  one  to  whom  North  Carolina  owes  a 
debt  she  will  never  pay." 

General  Martin's  health  had  been  much  impaired  by 
his  constant  service  as  Adjutant  General  in  the  equip- 
ment and  organisation  of  our  North  Carolina  troops, 
and  by  the  campaigns  and  services  of  his  brigade  in  east- 
ern North  Carolina  and  around  Petersburg  together  with 
the  loss  of  his  arm  in  Mexico.  He  accordingly  tendered 
his  resignation.  This  was  declined  "owing  to  his  valu- 
able services,"  but  in  July,  1864,  he  was  placed  in  com- 
mand of  western  North  Carolina  with  headquarters  at 
Asheville,  where  he  promptly  proceeded  to  raise  recruits 
for  our  depleted  regiments  and  form  new  ones.  With 
the  latter  he  beat  back  Kirk  and  his  marauders  along  the 
Tennessee  line. 

In  the  spring  of  1865  Gen.  Sherman  sent  a  cavalry 
column  of  3,000  men  to  force  its  way  across  the  mountains 
to  form  a  junction  with  the  Union  army  in  Tennessee. 
This  column  was  driven  back  by  a  small  force  of  Con- 
federates at  Swannanoa  Gap,  butfinallypassedthruHick- 
ory  Nut  Gap  and  was  approaching  Asheville  when  the 
truce  between  Sherman  and  Johnston  was  declared.  Its 
commander,  Gen.  Gillam,  and  Gen  Martin  met  about  6 
miles  from  Asheville,  on  the  road  to  Hendersonville,  and 
an  armistice  was  concluded  by  which  the  Union  Cavalry 
were  permitted  to  proceed  to  Tennessee.  Under  the 
terms  of  this  agreement,  in  order  to  prevent  levying  con- 
tributions on  the  march  by  the  Federal  Cavalry,  Gen. 
Martin  raised  provisions  for  4,000  men  supplemented  from 
the  Confederate  stores  in  Asheville.  After  the  close  of 
hostilities  on  the  statement  of  the  case  to  the  Federal 


16 


General  George  H.  Thomas,  who  had  been  Gen.  Martin's 
classmate  at  West  Point  and  who  was  then  commanding 
in  Tennessee,  the  full  amount  of  these  supplies  was  sent 
up  by  wagon  train  and  distributed  to  the  citizens  of  Ashe- 
ville  and  was  their  principal  food  supply  during  the  sum- 
mer of  1865. 

The  truce  that  was  made  between  the  forces  under 
Gen  Martin  on  23  April,  1865,  which  was  3  days  before 
Johnston's  surrender,  was  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
and  dramatic  events  of  the  War.  Three  thousand  hos- 
tile troops  were  peacefully  and  quietly  passed  thru  the 
Confederate  lines  then  thru  the  Main  Street  of  Asheville 
and  down  the  French  Broad  River  preceded  and  escorted 
by  Confederate  cavalry,  the  streets  of  Asheville  being 
policed  by  Confederate  Infantry,  with  not  a  single  un- 
toward incident,  altho  the  number  of  led  horses  in  the 
Federal  Column  gave  rise  to  much  chaffing  between  the 
soldiers.  To  add  to  the  incidents  of  this  memorable  oc- 
casion, Gen.  Gillam  and  his  staff,  in  full  Federal  uniform 
dined  with  Gen.  Martin  and  his  staff  in  full  Confederate 
uniform,  and  the  last  thing  Gen.  Gillam  said  to  Gen.  Mar- 
tin, as  he  left,  was  that  he  would  give  him  24  hours  notice 
of  the  ending  of  the  truce. 

Upon  reaching  the  Union  lines  in  Tennessee  and 
learning  by  wire  of  Johnston's  surrender  at  Greensboro, 
Gen.  Gillam  proceeded  to  Knoxville  but  dispatched  a 
brigade  under  Gen.  Brown  to  surprise  and  capture  Ashe- 
ville, in  direct  violation  of  the  terms  of  the  truce.  This 
the  Federals  succeeded  in  doing,  but  General  Palmer, 
the  Federal  General,  in  a  most  courteous  letter  ac- 
knowledged the  error  of  his  subordinate  and  released 
Gen.  Martin  and  his  troops  from  their  parole.  Gen. 
Martin  thereupon  gathered  up  the  few  officers  and  men 
who  had  not  left  Asheville  and  proceeding  to  Waynes- 


17 


ville  joined  Thomas'  legion  which  was  under  his 
command.  On  10  May,  1865,  however,  he  surrendered 
that  point  to  the  Federal  troops  who  were  closing 
in  on  him  on  all  sides.  He  thus  ended  his  military 
career.  After  having  served  gallantly  in  two  wars,  and 
after  a  military  service  of  20  years,  maimed  of  an  arm, 
without  a  profession,  penniless  and  deprived  of  his  civil 
rights,  he  began  life  anew. 

Gen.  Martin  soon  obtained  license  to  practice  law, 
in  Aug.,  1866,  and  in  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  that 
profession  and  as  an  active  member  of  the  Episcopal 
Church  which  he  represented  both  in  the  Diocesan  and 
General  Conventions  he  passed  the  remaining  years  of 
his  life  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  profound  respect  of  the 
community  in  which  he  lived.  He  died  in  Asheville  4 
Oct.,  1878,  and  was  buried  in  the  churchyard  of  Trinity 
Episcopal  Church,  which  building  was  not  at  that  time 
completed.  Tho  he  was  47  years  of  age,  when  under 
the  force  of  circumstances  he  took  out  license  to  practice 
law  he  promptly  acquired  high  standing  at  the  Bar,  for  3 
years  later  when  the  Fraud  Commission  was  created  to 
investigate  the  Swepson  and  Littlefield  frauds  and  three 
able  lawyers  were  required,  the  Legislature  selected 
Judge  William  M.  Shipp,  ex- Attorney  General  Joseph  B. 
Batchelor,  and  General  James  G.  Martin. 

When  General  Martin's  headquarters  were  plun- 
dered on  the  surprise  and  capture  of  Asheville  in  viola- 
tion of  the  truce  made  with  Gen.  Gillam,  among  other 
property  lost  was  his  sabre  which  he  had  worn  both  in 
the  Mexican  War  and  in  our  War.  Eleven  years  after- 
wards it  was  sent  to  his  son,  Judge  W.  B.  Martin,  by  a 
young  man  from  Arkansas  who  while  traveling  in 
Michigan,  or  Wisconsin,  found  it  and  obtained  possession 
of  it.     The  belt  attached  to  it  still  had  Gen.  Martin's 


18 


name  and  rank  on  it  and  a  clasp  with  the  N.  C.  coat  of 
arms.  This  sword  is  still  in  possession  of  his  son,  Judge 
W.  B.  Martin  of  Norfolk,  Va.  On  the  blade  has  been  in- 
scribed on  one  side  his  rank  in  the  U.  S.  army  and  the 
battles  in  Mexico  in  which  he  wore  the  sword  and  on 
the  other  his  rank,  as  Major  General  of  North  Carolina 
and  Brigadier  General  in  the  Confederate  service,  and 
the  battles  in  which  he  wore  it,  and  the  regiments  which 
composed  his  last  brigade — for  he  commanded  two,  at 
different  times. 

General  Martin 's  grandfather,  James  Green  Martin, 
was  a  Methodist  minister  who  resided  in  Norfolk,  Va. 
He  married  Susanna  Bruce  who  was  descended  from  the 
Bruces  in  Scotland.  He  left  two  children,  William  and 
Margaret,  the  former  of  whom  removed  to  Elizabeth 
City,  N.  C,  where  he  became  a  prominent  physician  and 
married  Sophia  Scott  Dauge,  a  daughter  of  Gen.  Peter 
Daugie  of  Camden  County. 

Gen.  Martin  left  two  sons  and  two  daughters.  1. 
William  B.  Martin,  a  highly  respected  and  honored  Judge 
now  residing  at  Norfolk,  Va. ;  2.  James  G.  Martin,  Jr. 
The  latter  has  since  died  leaving  two  daughters,  Mrs. 
Esther  K.  Metz,  wife  of  Charles  Metz,  who  now  resides 
in  Atlanta,  Ga.,  and  Mrs.  Anne  M.  Holmes,  widow  of  E. 
I.  Holmes,  now  residing  in  Asheville,  N.  C. ;  3.  Miss  Annie 
H.  Martin  of  Asheville,  N.  C,  who  has  recently  died; 
and  4.  Mrs.  Marianne  Tennent,  now  deceased,  who  left 
an  only  daughter,  Annie  M.  Caldwell,  wife  of  J.  H.  Cald- 
well, who  resides  at  Hawkinsville,  Ga.  Mrs.  Annie  D. 
Martin,  widow  of  James  G.  Martin,  Jr.,  is  still  living  and 
resides  in  Asheville,  N.  C. 

We  may  think  the  services  of  Gen.  Martin  and  his 
comrades  minimised  by  comparison  with  the  enormous 
forces  now  engaged  in  Europe.     But  we  must  not  forget 


19 


that  the  combatants  in  the  present  war  are  embattled 
nations.  Down  to  our  War  the  world  had  seen  no  greater 
struggle.  The  federal  records  show  that  the  Union 
placed  first  and  last  in  line  2,850,000  men,  while  on  the 
Confederate  side,  whose  records  have  been  lost,  the  esti- 
mates are  from  600,000  to  800,000.  Of  these  North  Caro- 
lina furnished  over  125,000,  the  bulk  of  whom  were  raised, 
equipped,  drilled  and  sent  to  the  front  under  the  super- 
vision of  General  Martin. 

We  can  also  judge  of  the  magnitude  of  our  War  by 
the  numbers  engaged  on  great  historic  fields.  Cesar 
when  he  won  the  world's  Empire  over  Pompey  at  Phar- 
salia  commanded  only  22,000  infantry  and  1,000  cavalry. 
Napoleon  won  the  mastership  of  France  by  his  victory 
at  Marengo  with  21,000  men  and  the  supremacy  in 
Europe  at  Austerlitz  with  80,000  and  lost  it  at  Waterloo 
where  he  commanded  65,000  men.  We  achieved  our 
independence  at  Yorktown  where  we  captured  7,073 
British  with  a  loss  in  killed  of  156  Americans  and  85 
French. 

We  can  also  judge  of  the  relative  importance  of 
our  struggle  by  the  fact  that  in  the  Revolutionary  War 
in  which  we  won  our  independence  against  the  greatest 
power  in  the  world  of  that  time,  we  left,  during  the  en- 
tire 7  years,  only  1,735  men  dead  on  the  field  of  battle 
and  we  would  have  been  beaten  then  but  for  the  help  of 
France.  In  the  War  of  1812,  our  second  war  with  Great 
Britain,  we  had  only  1,235  killed  outright  tho  that  war 
saved  us  the  entire  country  beyond  the  Mississippi,  half 
of  our  territory  at  that  date,  and  in  the  War  with  Mexico 
which  brought  us  Texas,  California,  and  the  great  ter- 
ritory lying  between  them,  one  third  of  the  area  of  the 
Union  at  present,  we  lost  only  1,047  men  killed.  In  our 
war,  1861-5,  North  Carolina  alone  had  5,016  men  killed 


20 


in  battle,  9,000  more  died  from  wounds  and  29,000  from 
disease,  making  a  total  of  43,000  men,  (or  one-third  of 
the  whole  number  of  soldiers  from  this  State)  which 
North  Carolina  lost  during  the  War,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
wounded  and  crippled  who  survived. 

Such  record  is  only  possible  to  a  brave  and  deter- 
mined people.  There  are  those  who  will  say  that  the 
cause  of  our  war  was  slavery,  and  therefore  it  was  un- 
just. After  the  lapse  of  more  than  half  a  century  we 
can  afford  to  speak  plainly  on  this  subject.  Not  one 
man  in  20  in  the  South  owned  slaves,  and  those  who 
served  with  our  soldiers  know  well  that  they  would  not 
have  fought  to  preserve  that  institution.  It  is  also  true 
that  on  the  other  side,  the  soldiery  would  not  have  gone 
into  battle  for  the  abolition  of  slavery  and  ever  indig- 
nantly denied  such  motive.  In  truth  the  soldiers  of  the 
South  fought  for  independence,  for  the  principle  that 
every  people  had  the  right  to  govern  themselves,  and  to 
change  their  government  at  will.  The  soldiery  of  the 
North  fought  for  the  Union,  and  the  Union  only,  because 
they  believed  that  the  preservation  of  liberty  depended 
upon  the  continuance  of  the  Union  in  its  integrity  and 
that  if  this  republic  failed,  there  would  never  be  another. 
Yet  we  must  admit  that  at  the  foundation  of  the  desire 
for  independence  there  was,  and  there  had  been  from  the 
beginning,  a  feeling  that  our  right  to  maintain  our  own 
institutions  including,  of  course,  that  of  slavery,  depended 
upon  our  having  an  independent  government,  secure  from 
interference  by  the  States  of  the  North.  Whatever  com- 
ment may  be  made,  this  is  the  plain  statement  of  the 
facts,  and  it  may  be  added  that  the  history  of  the  world 
shows  that,  in  like  manner  all  great  wars  have  been  al- 
ways based  upon  some  economic  cause. 

Probably,  I  may  say  almost  with  certainty,  the  two 


21 


most  brilliant  soldiers  from  North  Carolina  in  that  war 
were  the  two  young  major  generals — Pender,  who  was 
killed  at  29,  and  Hoke,  who  was  a  major  general  at  26. 
The  memory  of  both  we  have  perpetuated  in  the  names 
of  our  counties.  They  were  both  magnificent  soldiers, 
and  deserved  higher  rank  even  than  that  which  they  won 
but  it  may  be  doubted  if  with  all  the  splendor  of  their 
services  they  rendered  more  efficient  aid  to  their  State 
and  the  Confederacy  than  the  General  who  brought  into 
service  and  equipped,  drilled  and  disciplined  the  splendid 
soldiery  whom  Hoke  and  Pender  and  others  afterwards 
commanded  with  such  distinction  for  themselves  and 
honor  to  their  State.  When  the  roll  of  her  sons  is  called, 
North  Carolina  may  well  say  of  General  Martin  in  the 
words  of  the  great  Chieftain,  whom  I  have  quoted" North 
Carolina  oives  a  debt  to  General  Martin,  which  she  can 
never  repay." 

North  Carolina  has  established  as  its  memorial  day 
the  10th  of  May,  because  it  is  the  anniversary  of  the 
death  of  Stonewall  Jackson,  the  greatest  grief,  until  the 
final  one,  which  fell  upon  the  Confederacy,  and  a  loss  but 
for  which  the  South  might  well  have  succeeded.  During 
the  Trojan  War,  Achilles  was  the  great  hero  of  the  Greeks. 
After  the  close  of  the  war  and  his  death,  Ulysses  when 
starting  on  his  memorable  voyage,  which  is  so  beautifully 
narrated  by  Homer  in  the  Odyssey,  said  that  he  "pro- 
posed to  sail  beyond  the  western  stars  and  touch  at  the 
Happy  Isles,  where  perchance  we  may  see  again  the  great 
Achilles  whom  we  knew,  and  those  who  loved  and  fol- 
lowed him. ' '  There  are  still  with  us  some  who  like  Ulys- 
ses may  ere  long  pass  beyond  the  western  stars.  May 
they  touch  at  the  Happy  Isles  and  see  again,  perchance, 
our  great  Achilles,  and  the  friends  and  comrades  who 
loved  and  followed  him. 


22 


There  are  thousands  who  are  already  gone  on  that 
long  voyage.     Of  them  we  may  say: 

"How  sleep  the  brave  who  sink  to  rest 
With  all  their  country's  wishes  blest. 
By  fairy  hands  their  knell  is  rung, 
By  forms  unseen  their  dirge  is  sung 

When  Spring  with  dewy  fingers  cold 
Returns  to  deck  their  hallowed  mold 
She  dresses  there  a  sweeter  sod 
Than  fancy's  feet  have  ever  trod. 

There  Honor  comes  a  pilgrim  gray 
To  bless  the  turf  that  wraps  their  clay 
And  freedom  shall  awhile  repair 
To  dwell  a  weeping  hermit  there." 


